Just One Promise
by Abori Chan
Summary: The aftermath of the battle brings about tragedies for both Inuyasha and Sango. They have lost the ones they cared for so deeply. Can they reconcile themselves to their destiny and move on? One-Shot


**DISCLAIMER:** _I do not own the characters of Inuyasha. They belong to Rumiko Takahashi. _

* * *

"Kohaku…" Sango whispered as she knelt down and gazed at the tombstone that had been erected. The name of her brother had been roughly chiseled into the hard rock. The very letters that formed his name burned in Sango's heart, scarring it forever. "Kohaku…"The taijiya repeated as her brown eyes filmed over with tears and she broke down convulsed with sobs. It had been a week since their journey was officially over and the wretch Naraku was dead for once and for all. No matter how much she would try to forget him, Sango couldn't. No matter how much it pained her to see his grave she would still come here and make herself miserable again. Her past would come back to haunt her, yet again. Kohaku was a nervous boy, a little curious, a little timid. She remembered the day of his first assignment, the day he had asked her:

"_Ane-ue, do all demons breathe fire and poison, as they say?" Sango had paused in the midst of making a flower chain, the only 'womanly' past time she did when she wasn't exterminating demons or helping with making the potions or armor. _

"_Some demons do. Why do you ask, Kohaku?" She questioned throwing a glance at the boy beside her. "Uh, I was…just curious." He stuttered avoiding eye contact with the slayer. _

"_Kohaku? Are you…afraid?" Sango guessed as she took in his trembling body and sweaty palms. _

"_N-No! I was just curious, ane-ue!" The little fellow replied pushing his hands to the floor._

_Sango smiled maternally and put an arm around his shoulder. "It's all right Kohaku! We all are afraid, every now and then. Just remember…your ane-ue is always there by your side."_

"_Really? That makes me feel a little less afraid!" He beamed. Sango smiled down at his happy upturned face and went back to her past-time._

A lone tear slinked down the slayer's cheek. The wind carried it and duly deposited the salt water on the mound of earth before which she was seated. And it was the day when _that _had happened.

She remembered her own cry, anger and confusion as her brother had slashed at her. His eyes had glazed over and he refused to recognize his own family. That bastard Naraku, though had perished in a well deserved way had dragged her brother down, into the depths of hell. She could never forgive him. She could never forgive herself. '_What is my life now? Whom should I live for? What should I do?'_ Such a volley of thoughts shot through her head. She felt that living on was useless. She felt that everything had come to nothing. The most beloved piece of her life had been cut away and what was she to do without it?

"I'm sorry Kohaku. Please forgive me. I know that I have broken promises and I know I couldn't save you but…but remember that I'll always love you brother. Always. At least you are free now. But Kohaku, what should I do with my life? I could rebuild our village but what will I do there alone? It will be worse there because it harbours Chichi-ue and other's graves. Those memories will never be wiped out Kohaku." Sango blurted out in a frenzy.

She knew that this was the first sign of disturbed behaviour and the probability that she would go senile but she didn't care. She wanted to vent her feelings but she didn't want to burden her friends with her problems. She traced a trembling finger along the etched name. Would she be able to feel his soul if she traced out his name? Sango laughed at her weird notions. If she spent more time here she would surely go mad. The evening clouds cast deep shadows across her frame. The sun was setting. Soon it would be time to go home. Sango stood up wearily and ran a hand through her disheveled hair. It had been a week since she hadn't groomed herself. But it didn't matter. Kohaku would love his sister no matter how she looked. "Goodbye Kohaku. Rest well." The taijiya whispered as she turned away and proceeded towards the village. Unbeknownst to the woman a pair of eyes watched her thoughtfully from the shadows as she proceeded towards the village

* * *

"Shut up and leave me alone!" A familiar irritated voice rang out from Kaede's hut. The owner of the voice stomped out of the hut and made his way into the forest. Once there, the silver haired hanyou jumped onto the tough arms of his favourite tree. He ensconced himself into one of the higher branches and lay back in a ruminative mood. _'Stupid humans…'_ He thought as his amber eyes focused on the far away stars. A particularly bright star twinkled and glowed capturing his attention. The annoyed man's eyes softened. _'Kikyou…is that where you are now?'_ He questioned sadly and his eyes dimmed. He fought back the urge to cry. "Fuck you, Naraku! I hope you got the hell you deserved!" Inuyasha growled bitterly as his mind unearthed some painful memories. Kikyou was his life. She was his love. She was the only woman to understand him truly after his mother. And he had lost her. He had let her die through the hands of that bastard. He broke his promise. He remembered the day they had met near this very place purely by chance, the day he had said:

"_Naraku is in love with you?!" Inuyasha gasped in shock and disbelief. His stomach churned and he felt sick. _

"_Perhaps, there's a lingering feeling for me in his—no—Onigumo's heart." Kikyou replied briefly judging the reaction of the hanyou. Inuyasha stood numb. He didn't know what to say anymore. How could a disgusting being like Naraku harbour any feelings for Kikyou? His head reeled. _

"_Kikyou…Kikyou I don't care how you feel about our relationship now. But know this: Naraku cannot touch you until I'm alive." He stated stepping closer to the miko. Kikyou backed away against the Goshinboku uncertainty reflecting in her eyes. _

_That look pained Inuyasha. Did she not trust him? Was she still wary of him? After all he had done for her and loved her? He dashed towards his love and gripped her firmly by the shoulders. _

"_Inuyasha…what are you doing?!" Kikyou asked struggling to be free. The hanyou gripped her tighter and pulled her into an awkward embrace. _

"_Kikyou…you will not have to fight anymore." He whispered in her ear. This seemed to stun her so much so that she stopped struggling. He pulled her cold body closer. _

"_I will protect you!"_

_The entire forest echoed of this declaration. _

Inuyasha blinked. This was long ago yet it was one of the fond memories of yesterday. He had failed her. She was no longer in this world. She could not feel any sorrow or pain but why did he continue to endure? Why did those memories haunt him burdening him with guilt and shame? Was it an eternal curse of being a hanyou? It could be. "Bad things happen to people I befriend." He said out aloud.

"That's not true." A quiet female voice spoke. Inuyasha reared up and looked down. Sango stood there appearing ghostly in her white yukata. She looked at him steadily with her dark eyes as he jumped down. "What's up Sango? What are you doing so late here in the night? You don't even have your weapon." He said casually as he walked up and scrutinized the tree he had been pinned to for 50 years. The woman didn't reply but sat on one of the thick roots that protruded from the ground. Inuyasha placed a hand on the scar that time had inflicted on the tree. A scar that very much mirrored the one on his heart. Goshinboku housed many of the bittersweet memories of his past. He grew sentimental as he moved his hand along the wound and sighed. The arrowhead that had lodged into this chest was still stuck in the ancient bark of that tree. Removing it would of course be impossible. He would have to tear apart this tree itself. Kikyou's loss was very much like that arrowhead. He wanted to remove it but to remove it he would have to tear apart his heart. If he left it there it would throb, eternally.

"Well, looks like I don't have much of a choice, Kikyou. I promised you that I'd protect you but…I couldn't. Looks like it's because I'm a half demon. At least you're free from all those miseries and are at peace. But what about me Kikyou? You never thought of me before you left. You never thought that I'll have to carry on like this with nothing to live for. What do I do now? What will I do with my life as a useless half demon who will only be despised for what he is?" Inuyasha rambled angrily. Tears burned at the corner of his eyes. He brushed them away and looked up as he felt a stare boring into his soul. Sango was watching him quietly and she made no attempt to move away even when he had caught her staring. Inuyasha's first reaction would be to yell at her. He needed no sympathy. But when his eyes locked with hers again he felt a twinge of surprise.

Sango was not staring at him with sympathy. Instead there was a deep understanding in her eyes combined with traces of sorrow. Inuyasha gazed back at her calmer now. Yes. She knew what he was going through. He had been too wrapped up and too muddled to even consider his friend's problem. Sango had lost Kohaku just like he had lost Kikyou. They both could relate to each other's sorrows well. He plopped down beside the taijiya and said, "Sorry, Sango. I was just venting my feelings." "It's fine Inuyasha. I understand." The slayer replied looking at the ground.

"You visit Kohaku a lot don't you?" He asked quietly. "How do you know?" Sango asked meeting Inuyasha's eyes. "I…just do." He muttered lightly glancing at the sky.

They remained quiet for a while taking in the sounds of the forest. The crickets chirped continually and fireflies glowed in the long grass. "What will you do now Sango? Are you going to marry that monk?" Inuyasha asked.

"I don't know Inuyasha. I'm not yet in a condition to marry and settle down. What about you? You haven't used the jewel since it has been recovered." Sango said.

"I don't know either. The jewel has been recovered but we still don't know if it has a power of its own. If a single shard could manipulate someone so easily how much more powerful is the jewel?"

Sango blinked. She knew that Inuyasha was right. A thing that she had heard from her father came back to her:

_"Those who come in contact with the fate of the Shikon no Tama…are forever doomed."_

It was true. The fate of the Shikon no Tama couldn't be destroyed. She also realized that herself, Inuyasha, Kikyou, Kohaku and Naraku were strongly bound by this thread. Kagome, Miroku and Shippo were never its true targets. So did that mean that she was somehow connected to the hanyou's fate? It was possible. They both had gone through similar situations in their lives. It was possible.

"Inuyasha…I think it would be best not to use the jewel." Sango whispered looking at him. Inuyasha appeared confused. "Eh? Why is that?" He asked.

"Houshi-sama and Kagome-chan have never faced betrayal. They never had to fight the ones they loved. But you and Kikyou, I and Kohaku are bound by this thread of betrayal. Naraku was just a puppet for the jewel." Sango explained in a low voice. "Do you mean to say that the jewel is the true enemy?!" Inuyasha exclaimed.

"Yes. But the other three have already been consumed by the jewel so that leaves…" "Us?" Inuyasha asked bewildered.

"Yes. We are the only ones left, Inuyasha." Sango confirmed. "You don't mean to say that…the jewel did not disappear because its work was still unfinished?" He asked intrigued.

"That's true. Everyone who has come in contact with the Shikon no Tama either died or faced betrayal. There is a possibility that the jewel may try to tear us apart. Remember what Kaede-baba had said about the jewel having a good and a bad side? The more we despair and blame ourselves for what happened, the powerful the jewel grows. It feeds off on the misery of others. And maybe it will try something on us too..." Sango choked out. She was trembling. Inuyasha understood. He took the taijiya's hand in his and said gently,

"Don't worry Sango. We will make it through. We have come until here. We have endured, both of us. Let us work together to forget what happened and move on with our lives. I won't let the jewel win. I promise."

"Inuyasha…" Sango gasped. She had never expected to hear such words from him. She then smiled and scooted closer to him.

Inuyasha didn't mind when she put her head across his shoulder. Instead he held her close by the waist and shut his eyes. A strong purpose had formed in his mind. He had finally found something to live for. And so had she.

"_I'll protect you Sango." _

"_I'll always be by your side, Inuyasha." _

At least this promise wouldn't be broken.

* * *

In the near silent forest two figures watched the sleeping couple. The boy looked curiously at the woman and thought...

_'Ane-ue and Inuyasha-sama…well…that is kind of unexpected.'_

He looked up at the older miko beside him and asked "Kikyou-sama, is something wrong?" "No. Kohaku. Your sister and Inuyasha are strong enough. They will endure."

"Ane-ue comes and talks to me every day. I feel good but I don't like the way she blames herself." Kohaku informed her. "I know, Kohaku, I know. They will heal each other's heart. Time will make them forget everything. We need not worry." _'As long as they have each other…'_ Kikyou thought as she glanced at them and spoke, "Let's go. We've seen enough."

The two apparitions vanished just as silently as they had appeared.

* * *

**A/N: So how was it? Please review! I was just taking a break from my other fic "A Little Sunshine" and this popped in my head. **

**So who was watching Sango? I'll leave that to you. Sorry for the loooooong chapter. **

**I know that IY and Sango are acting a lil OOC but…it just came out that way. :|  
**

**If you're bored with the jewel thing I'm sorry…I'm very bad at making endings. ^^; **


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